No. 12 Indiana water polo finished its season in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championships Friday and Saturday in Los Angeles, losing both games to end its season.
Indiana, the No. 7 seed, matched up against No. 2-seeded USC on Friday afternoon to kick off the tournament. The Trojans got off to a hot start, scoring inside the opening two minutes. USC’s first-quarter dominance continued, scoring four more to lead 5-0 after only six minutes.
The Hoosiers found themselves drowning early. Indiana got on the board through junior attacker Grace Klingler, but it was followed by another USC goal seconds later. A goal from Hoosier senior attacker Skylar Kidd was again quickly cancelled out to give USC a 7-2 lead after one quarter.
USC entered another gear in the second quarter, constricting the Indiana attack as it conceded no goals. The goals flowed for the Trojans, however, as they scored five more to take a 12-2 advantage into halftime.
With one half still to go, the match already seemed essentially over. Even still, USC continued to pile on the goals, scoring three within a 30-second span early in the third quarter.
Senior center Sophia Sollie managed to score Indiana’s first goal since the first quarter, but it was followed by three more USC goals. With a quarter still to play, Indiana found themselves losing 18-3.
The final quarter saw the scoring slow, as the game was essentially decided. Klingler managed to score back-to-back goals, but it meant little in the end. In its worst loss of the season, Indiana fell 20-5.
Following the Friday result, Indiana played No. 6-seeded Arizona State University in an elimination game Saturday. The Hoosiers played the Sun Devils twice earlier in the season, losing both times.
Indiana started off on the wrong foot, conceding in the first minute. The Hoosiers responded quickly, however, with senior utility player Portia Sasser scoring the equalizer.
Arizona State then grabbed hold of the game, scoring four straight goals. With fears of a similar performance to USC unfolding, Sasser scored with one second left in the first quarter to make the score 5-2.
Arizona State scored a further two goals early into the second quarter, but Kidd and junior attacker Louisa Downes responded with a goal each. Each side scored one more to end the half, with the Sun Devils having an 8-5 advantage.
Arizona State scored 22 seconds into the second half, although senior attacker Olivia Stark answered with a strike of her own. The goals continued to pile up as the third quarter progressed, with the Sun Devils extending their lead by a further four goals.
Time started to run out on Indiana’s season as the fourth quarter began. Arizona State scored again to increase its lead to 8, and despite goals from Kidd and senior attacker Grace Hathaway, the inevitable seemed to be on the horizon.
Senior defender Claire Witting scored Indiana’s final goal of the season with a minute to go. As the clock struck zero, the Hoosiers’ season officially ended, losing 19-11.
The Hoosiers’ season wraps up on a disappointing note, with their conference season falling flat. They failed to win a single conference match, going 0-8. They also failed to surpass last season’s win total, falling from 21-10 in 2024 to 17-12 in 2025.
The defense often was unable to stop the top teams, unable to limit opposing firepower. In six games versus top 5 teams, five opponents scored 19 goals or more. In the two tournament games, the Hoosiers conceded 39 times.
The Hoosiers’ offense, however, was prolific at many points of the season. Kidd led the team with 62 goals, with Downes right behind at 56 goals. Sollie managed to score 37 goals while providing only 2 assists, compared to 32 assists from Kidd and 29 from Downes. Klingler and Sasser both netted 35 and 34 goals, respectively.
As the season is now over, the Hoosiers must look to the future. They have many upcoming underclassmen to replace the impact the seniors will be leaving behind, but nothing its guaranteed.
